When I hosted our first horror write-off back in 2012, I was absolutely blown away by both the turnout and sheer quality. Over 130 stories were submitted, and every last one was fun or interesting in its own way. Naturally, I wondered how well a second round would measure up to the first, and even wondered if it might have to be cancelled due to lack of interest.

Instead, you guys more than doubled last year's number of entries while exhibiting at least the same level of imagination and talent. Picking winners for the contest (still the most I can afford to reward) is harder than ever, but we can at least afford twice as many as last year! Remember, they're only limited in number out of necessity; all of the stories here are worth a look, and if you've ever enjoyed short horror fiction at all, you're bound to find a few dozen new favorites here.

Once again, there are just a few things to remember before we dive into this year's stories!

IMPORTANT STUFF:

- If you don't see your entry, I ate it or I made an error typing all this out manually. Please let me know and re-send your story!

- If you were working on a story and didn't finish it in time, I want to see it anyway!

- If you don't see your entry, I ate it or I made an error typing all this out manually. Please let me know and re-send your story!

- "Creepypasta" does not necessarily mean "public domain." All of these stories are copyright their respective creators and may not be published for any kind of profit without their consent. If you repost any of these stories to a blog, forum or imageboard, just include the same author credit and a link back to its respective page!

- Don't be a jerk about things you don't like! Be friendly and constructive! We're only here to have fun!

CONTEST WINNERS:

If your story is here, e-mail me for a shirt of your choice from the store!

CAPTAIN'S LOG - By Elliot Avery - If I gave out a single "first" place, this would be it. Don't you dare read the ending before you scroll back up and read the rest, I know your type.

A CONTEMPORARY FUNERAL - By Pyro Gibberish - The bright side is, nobody technically ever sees their loved ones die...but where are they going? And what the hell are those?

BABY WEIGHT - By Peppermint Monster - A tale of motherhood, a disturbing eating disorder and what may or may not be a monstrous delusion.

BONES OF GOD - By Irene Vallone - It was difficult to pick the best story out of Vallone's dozen or so entries, but we all thought this surreal stage script was something special. Don't skip the rest of her submissions!

ALL THROUGH THE NIGHT - By Daniel Saults - An adventure game with text and sound! Click to download the executable in a zip, or try the online version here! Navigate by clicking the map and refer to the readme file for more info. Successfully scared me.

SECOND PLACE WINNERS:

I'm not made of t-shirts but if you're here, drop me a line and I could at least send you one of those omfg figures or something!

THE GLASS DOOR - By Lasagnaface - An odyssey in...well, it's an odyssey in any case. NSFW.

THE ROOF - By C. Lonnquist - I liked all of Lonnquist's stories, but I thought this may have had the most inventive premise.

DISTANCE YOURSELVES - By Kieran Haines - The human race is very, very different in the future...don't miss Kieran's even more grotesque and crazy Today Will be a Fun Day. It was tough to decide which of the two belonged here.

THINJAMAN - By Connor - Very short and I neither need nor want to explain why I liked this one so much.

THE SMOKER - By Miranda Johansson - A highly original, atmospheric and chilling piece inspired by one of the monsters from Don't Get Spooked!

SOMETHING BOLTED THIS WAY COMES - By Andrew Howard - More adventure than horror, but in a fascinating hidden world of half-metal constructs with a lighthearted but at times still creepy tone!

NEW NEIGHBORS - By Sly Devil - Several stories this year featured "end of the world" scenarios with bizarre, unexplained creatures, and they're pretty much all awesome, but I thought the monsters here warranted special appreciation.

THEY - By Beatric Urvogel - A tale of uneathly, vindictive strangers with unknown motives.

NAKED - By Alexis Feynman - A whole lot of build-up to one single, simple line of dialog that changes the entire story...and raises a lot of deliciously unanswered questions. Resist the urge to spoil yourself!

THE BOXES: ONLY EVER BUY THE TRUE SODAS - By Samuel Miller - "Today, I saw 2 gray-skinned, lumpy people. The first was a man, who had small eyes, and his arms were like short, lumpy flippers with fingers."